That's when this happened:
One of our neighbor's chickens, Buck, was visiting at the time. Actually, all chickens are named Buck, and they think all humans are named Buck --if not everything else as well. They'll mutter, "Buck, Buck, Buck", and whatever shows up in response is fine with them.
I replied, "Just follow it until you can get around it, then go home."
Over the fence, our view of the creek had assumed a strangely automated immensity.
Giant yellow prairie-spankers stand in wait, asking " 'ere now, who's been naughty?"
The new creek will be 40-50 feet wide and 40 feet deep. After next year, our Dept. of Parks and Recreation will assume maintenance of the riparian, freeing us oldies from the agony of sharpening chainsaws and buying extra beer. Nobody for miles is renewing flood insurance.
What we do have, for better or worse, for richer for poorer, is a second lavatory on our property.
A second lavatory is always a winner, though I prefer them to be easier to access.
ReplyDeleteI hope your health continues its upwards trajectory.
Alas, our 2nd loo is temporary and meant for the county workers. I like how they placed it in the cover of trees I planted 30 years ago. Am I considerate of their privacy or what? Thanks for good health wishes; I really need them.
DeleteIt sounds as though you were good neighbors. Good to know progress is being made. Isn't it amazing how all those trees we planted so many years ago are now mature and well, older trees. I visited a mid-west home where we planted trees when the girls were young-it now has the appearance of a lovely park. It is good work, leaving trees.
ReplyDeleteHope you are feeling better.
To us it feels like we're getting a smaller, more manageable property without the trouble of moving. This change in the creek contour was not unexpected.
DeleteAh, la toilette est tres chic, uh?
ReplyDeleteMerci mon ami. Nous sommes maintenant à la hauteur de la mode!
DeleteThere's your summers entertainment for you. And who couldn't use an extra lavatory.
ReplyDeleteIt should provide an interesting project this summer, and a useful one. More people are moving to this vineyard area and safety is certainly a concern.
DeleteOh the wonderful sounds you will hear when those yellow machines begin to hum. Maybe it will be a quick job.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure it will be a quick job --at least on our stretch of the creek. But there's miles and miles yet to go from here.
DeleteBe sure to take photos, of the project and not the toilet.
ReplyDeleteWe doubtless will take photos, Susan --but once those steel behemoths get to tearing things up, we'll retreat to a vantage beside the most protected area (the "Blue Room" in the closing post-photo).
DeleteSo much for dozing in the shade of a tree while those machines are doing their noisy work. But on the bright side, at our age, an emergency potty can be a good thing, even if it's only temporary.
ReplyDeleteTake care, dude. I hope your health is continuing to improve.
Oh, I don't mind so very much, Susan. A bigger drainage system will make a lot of homes safer. This summer will see it complete --and I'll be busy with treatments and procedures. Dude's got some stuff to get through.
DeletePlus, Happy 49th to you and Smarticus. We're only a year behind!
DeleteI hope the changes are for the good, Geo.
ReplyDeleteBruce, the changes hold promise here, all of them. Thanks.
DeleteBuck!
ReplyDeleteHear hear!
DeleteIt will no doubt be a relief to have the chance of flooding reduced, and less maintenance of the area you have sold.
ReplyDeleteI see by your reply to a comment that you have some health-related things to keep you out of trouble this summer. Best wishes with all of it. And when in doubt, make like a chicken and say Buck :)
Thanks, dear Jenny. Will do my best and am relieved of some property maintenance that I never thought twice about when we bought this place 36 years ago. But now I'm older and often in doubt --fortunately I'm fluent in Chicken.
DeleteLoo with a view! My favourite kind. Will the creek be swimmable?
ReplyDeleteI hope it's all more fun than hassle!
Still sending Get Well Stay Well wishes :-)
Thanks, Dear Lisa. It will be a busy summer, healthwise and creekwise. I hope the creek will at least remain canoe-able. That was one of the reasons we moved here to raise our kids in confluence with nature. They are middle-aged and scattered now, but good memories remain.
DeleteI've said, "What the buck!" many times at the latest intrusions of big yellow machines. The city of Aurora has done extensive reworking of Piney Creek's channel in my area over the last decade, much of it to control flash floods. At first the ground and creek look ravaged; but nature is amazing, and within one season everything is flourishing. I've seen one pool completely gouged out, all the reeds and other vegetation removed, and the channel banks stabilized.
ReplyDeleteThat was a loud "What the buck" when I stumbled on that. I was taking my sister Barb to see a favorite pool, and it was gone. Within weeks, green was creeping back, and by the next summer you'd never know the pool had been gouged out. It's full of minnows, red-winged blackbirds, and all kinds of living plants and animals. Why am I telling you this? You're a P&R guy. LOL
Hopefully the loss of some of your yard will be balanced by reducing your maintenance work and the threat of flooding. You and Norma are the best kind of neighbors. Have a good one!
Kind Louise, Although oft-mistaken for a Party & Rage guy in my late 60s (I tell people I'm 20 so they think I party hardy), I'm more of a Plant & Reap Guy. I sure appreciate your description of pool-recovery you and your sister encountered. I look forward to Parks And Recreation Dept. assuming maintenance of a new riparian next year. Today, we're in the house listening to trees fall. We're ok; trust you are too.
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